The Missing Part Of The Whole
by elliehenry
Summary: The final scene from the 100th ep, only what should have happened. Booth & Brennan have spent six years trying to forget the night they met. Now Sweet's new book will challenge them to face up to what happened that night. Or rather, what did NOT happen...
1. Part 1 Outburst

_**Author's Note.**_

_**Disclaimer: **_

_**I don't own Bones or any of it's characters but if I did the show's 100th episode "The Sum In The Parts Of The Whole' would have been a hell of alot better.**_

_**There were far too many problems with the plot for a start.**_

_**It's very hard to go back in time and de-construct established characters but Hart Hanson made no attempt at all – the script felt cobbled together in a rush with no thought to character traits or development. I'm sorry, but there's no way in hell Bones would call Booth a "bully", especially for the flimsy reasons she gave in the episode. **_

_**The worst part of the whole thing was the final scene, which did not actually make sense. Bones can't be with Booth because she's a scientist...?**_

_**Eh?**_

_**So this is my version of the final scene...**_

_**This is what should have happened after our duo left Sweets...**_

_**This is what should have happened outside the Jeffersonian...**_

_Booth and Brennan have spent the last six years trying to forget the night they met._

_And they might have succeeded... _

_If it wasn't for Sweets's new book._

_It forces our duo to face up to what really happened that night._

_Or rather... _

_What did **not** happen..._

_**THE MISSING PART OF THE WHOLE.**_

_**Part 1.**_

_**Outburst.**_

"Do you think we should have told him?"

Booth spoke up as soon as they were outside the Jeffersonian, away from the prying ears of Dr. Lance Sweets.

Brennan pursed her lips and hesitated... but only for a second.

"Told him what?" She said nonchalantly, choosing to feign ignorance.

Booth looked at her and frowned.

"You _know_ what." He accused crossly, annoyed at her nonplussed expression. "We just _lied_ in there."

He gestured back towards Sweets's office.

Brennan shook her head. "Actually that is not accurate. We simply... withheld a few things, that's all."

Booth stopped mid-walk, turning to her.

"That's all?" He repeated, incredulously.

He didn't give her a chance to reply.

"We may have _withheld_ a few things, _as you put it_, but we also _lied_. You told him you went home to your bed after we kissed and I said I went home to mine. You know as well as I do, _that's_ not accurate."

Brennan looked at him, frowning.

"I didn't lie." She stated matter-of-factly. "I told Sweets I went home to my bed and I did... _eventually._ Is that why your angry? Look, you didn't really lie either. You went to bed after I'd gone right? All we did was withhold the information in between that Sweets doesn't need to know about."

"But-" Booth began to argue but Brennan cut him off.

"But what Booth? We did what we came to do. We made Sweets aware his book is not factually accurate. Now he knows he will change it accordingly."

Booth bit his lip, troubled. "But it still won't be right though, will it?"

Brennan blinked at him.

"Is that what your worried about? The authenticity of Sweets's book?"

She shrugged, bewildered. "You weren't concerned about that before. I was the one intent on correcting him earlier... Why you should be concerned now...?"

She paused, thoughtful. "Although I can understand why you would want to protect your sexual reputation as it effects your success attracting potential mates-"

"W-w-what?" Booth spluttered.

Seeing the look on his face, Brennan went into scientist mode.

"Alcohol is medically recognised as a prohibiter of sexual performance." She declared, as if this was supposed to make him feel better.

Booth's eyes widened in shock.

"That has nothing to do with what happened that night!" He declared angrily. "Jeez Bones! I wish I hadn't said anything now!" He turned away from her... but half a second later he whipped back around again.

_"Fo__r your information_ I wasn't the only one who was drunk that night!" He blurted out hotly.

Brennan was unfazed. She folded her arms across her chest and nodded thoughtfully.

"I can agree the consumption of alcohol probably did effect my actions that night, but it's beside the point. Your concerns for your sexual reputation are unfounded-"

"Just stop right there, Bones!" Booth was getting annoyed now. "Can we just focus on the real issue here please? Look, I only asked if we should have told Sweets the real version of what happened that night because he expects us to be truthful. You know he's not my favourite person or anything, but I do believe him when he says he's trying to help us, so maybe we shouldn't have lied to him."

Brennan opened her mouth to speak at this and Booth quickly added. "Or _withheld_ anything."

Booth saw Brennan's expression change as a shadow crossed her face.

When she spoke her voice was quiet.

"He would split us up... if he knew the truth. He'd split us up."

Booth felt a knot in his stomach but he kept his voice steady.

"Maybe not-"

"Yes he would." Brennan cut him off, her voice suddenly stronger. "You heard what Sweets said in there. He thinks we kissed. He thinks we punished each other because we missed our chance. What would he say if he knew -"

She stopped abruptly, swallowing, unable to finish the rest of _that_ sentence.

She shook her head roughly instead and tried to sound firm.

"Look Booth, we work together and in the end we both want that to continue. So we withheld something to protect our partnership. Do you really want to go back in there now and talk about it? After the Cleo Eller case, we swore we would never talk about-"

The sentence died on her lips again but Booth could not stop himself finishing it for her.

"What might have been?"

Brennan looked at him, frowning.

What was that supposed to mean?

She shook her head and said simply, like he should have known, "What happened that night."

_At her words Booth felt the first brick, from a metaphorical dam, crumble inside him._

She still could not acknowledge the truth.

His fists clenched at his sides and tension spread throughout his body.

Brennan was watching him.

"Booth...?" She questioned, uncertainly.

He heard the confusion in her voice.

He was angry.

And she didn't understand just _why_ he was angry.

That was all it took.

_The whole dam gave way._

"What _did_ happen that night Bones?" He asked through gritted teeth.

His tone was so low even Brennan could not miss the unmistakable danger in his voice.

Booth knew they had an agreement never to discuss this but right now, he did not care at all.

He looked her in the eye and Brennan saw the fire there, an intensity that she'd never known and her only thought was to run.

_Just run._

So she took a step backwards, away from him... deliberately avoiding the heat of his gaze.

Booth knew what she was doing.

_But he was dammed if he was going to let her get away now without a fight._

So he took a step closer to her, closing the gap between them and when she backed away again, he took another and another and another, until her back hit the brick wall behind her and there was no where left for her to go.

With every step he spoke to her.

"Come on Bones, you tell me." His voice got stronger with every word. "Sweets isn't here now... it's just you and me... so come on, let's talk."

When her back hit the wall, he boxed her in with his body, not close enough that they were touching but close enough for her to know he was done playing games.

Brennan refused to look him in the eye. She tried to sound firm but even to her own ears she just sounded feeble. "I don't think... that's a good idea-"

"Well I do." Booth's eyes flashed as he cut her off. "Six years Bones, that's how long we've _**not**_ talked about this... enough is enough... it's time."

Brennan finally looked at him.

"There's nothing to say."

Booth stared at her, incredulous.

"_What?" _

He couldn't believe she had actually said this.

Brennan took advantage of his shock to gain her control back from him.

"You heard me." She said, her chin came up defiantly. "I'm not doing this. What happened is in the past."

"But it's _not_ in the past, is it?" Booth sounded flustered, trying to make her see. "It's always there. It's never gone away! Not for me! And not for _you_ either!"

Brennan remained cold.

"No good can come from talking about this Booth. I mean it. I have nothing to say."

She made to step away from him.

"Nothing to say!"

He could not control the flood of emotions that burst out of him.

He had never felt so frustrated, so annoyed, _so just-plain-pissed, _at his partner.

He stepped so closely into her personal space that her heart leapt into her mouth.

"You and I kissed Bones! We kissed _alot._"

She flinched at this, unable to look at him and he realised.

"That's what scares the heck out of you isn't it? _That's _what you don't want to talk about. You'd rather pretend it never happened! Well enough! You can't make this go away Bones! I won't let you. I'm sick of pretending! We need to talk about this! For God's sake look at me!"

She looked at him but her expression was sullen and hostile.

Refusing to back down, Booth looked her in the eye and spoke challengingly.

"Six years ago we didn't _just _kiss and you know it! The truth is we didn't _stop_ kissing! You let me kiss you _and_ you kissed me back Bones! Over and over again! In the cab! In my doorway! In my bedroom-"

"**THEN WHY DIDN'T WE HAVE SEX BOOTH? !"**

It was not really a question, but an angry accusation.

Booth stared at her in shock.

They both knew a shadow had been lurking over their partnership for the last six years.

_And this was it._

It was also the subject they had agreed to lock away and never discuss.

No one was more shocked than Brennan, that _she_ had been the one to open it.

Booth knew he had been harsh with her but he didn't expect her to react like that... as if she was still so angry about what had happened that night...

Or rather what had_ not _happened that night...

And Booth found himself going back in time...

To that rainy night six years ago, when he and Brennan had got drunk on tequila... and then taken a cab back to his apartment...

He remembered everything.

So clearly.

_Even now. _

He remembered what it felt like to kiss her. He remembered how soft her hair felt when he ran his fingers through it. He remembered taking off her blouse because he wanted, no _needed_, to feel her skin and the smell of her daffodil-scented body lotion, that had lingered with him for days afterwards...

He even remembered how she'd made this little purring sound when he ghosted his fingers over the small of her back...

_But they never had sex._

Because that was the moment he also remembered how much tequila they'd drank.

It was all wrong.

He didn't do one night stands as a rule.

Just this one time, who knows, he may have chosen to forget that rule, because, God, he was hot for her, but then she'd made that purring sound.

And as soon as he heard it, he knew.

He just knew.

That sound told him he couldn't have a one night stand with _this_ woman.

It would never be enough.

She was special.

So he'd stopped.

How he had managed that, God only knew, but he'd told her he couldn't.

He said they were drunk.

He didn't want her to regret it.

That was when she'd laughed and told him she didn't care.

It was just sex.

And _that_ was when Booth had pulled away from her...

It wasn't just sex, not to him, not with her.

Unfortunately, when he tried to explain that, he messed it up because she seemed to think he was insulting her...

_That was when she'd got angry..._

_That _was when she'd started shouting...

And _that_ was when she stormed out...

She had stopped just long enough on her way out the door, to vow something that had stayed with Booth all the time he had known her.

"I swear Seeley Booth, if you let me leave now you've lost me! No second chances!"

For six whole years these words had haunted him.

He tried everything to forget, to pretend.

He ended up having to build a dam around his heart to keep his feelings inside.

Because he knew, even then, that Temperance Brennan was the type of woman who never went back on her word.


	2. Part 2 Run Tempe Run

**The Missing Part Of The Whole.**

**Previously...**

Booth has Brennan backed against a wall outside the Jeffersonian. He's angry and she's stony-faced...

"I have nothing to say."

"Nothing to say!"

He stepped so closely into her personal space that her heart leapt into her mouth.

"You and I kissed Bones! We kissed _alot._"

She flinched at this, unable to look at him and he realised.

"That's what scares the heck out of you isn't it? _That's _what you don't want to talk about. You'd rather pretend it never happened! Well enough! You can't make this go away Bones! I won't let you. I'm sick of pretending! We need to talk about this! For God's sake look at me!"

She looked at him but her expression was sullen and hostile.

Refusing to back down, Booth looked her in the eye and spoke challengingly.

"Six years ago we didn't_ just _kiss and you know it! The truth is we didn't _**stop**_ kissing! You let me kiss you _and_ you kissed me back Bones! Over and over again! In the cab! In my doorway! In my bedroom-"

"_**THEN WHY DIDN'T WE HAVE SEX BOOTH? !"**_

_**Part 2. **_

_**Run Tempe Run. **_

_Oh God. _

Where had _that _come from_?_

He'd just made her so angry...

The words just came out...

And now...

Brennan stared at her partner.

Booth stared right back.

He looked as shocked as she felt.

His eyes were huge, his mouth hung open.

He looked... speechless.

And so was she.

For the first time in her life Temperance Brennan did not know what to do.

She prided herself on always being in control.

She was _the_ calm and collected, ever-professional Temperance Brennan.

The woman who simply did not _do_ emotional outbursts.

Right now she was certainly understanding why.

Shock.

Dread.

Regret.

One emotion after another overwhelmed her as they stared at each other.

_And God she was angry._

What was there to gain from dragging up the memory of that night?

Brennan had spent the last six years trying to forget it.

She didn't _want_ to remember.

Anything.

Not one single thing.

But at this, she couldn't stop the tidal wave of images that came flooding back to her-

She and Booth drinking tequila in the bar.

Downing shot after shot of the clear liquid and laughing...

The first time he kissed her.

His soft lips gentle against hers...

His fingers cupping the back of her head as they kissed again and again.

The cab ride to his apartment... the desire growing between them...

She remembered the way he'd struggled to put the key in his front door...

They'd fallen onto his bed, a tangle of limbs and heated skin...

How he'd ghosted his fingers over her lower back in the most erotic way and-

He'd rejected her.

_That _was when he'd rejected her.

Brennan visibly flinched.

Memory was harsh and painful.

_And **he** was making her remember._

That just made her angrier.

Her face contorted in fury and she found her voice.

"Forget it!" She spat bitterly. "Just forget this whole dam conversation! I'm going home!"

Then she whirled around and stalked away from him.

Booth was stunned again by her sudden departure.

For a moment his feet were rooted to the floor and all he could do was stare after her...

The sight of her leaving triggered something.

_A memory._

Temperance Brennan storming out of his apartment six years ago...

Her angry face as she yelled at him:

"I swear Seeley Booth, if you let me leave now you've lost me! No second chances!"

_And a regret._

Because Booth had not stopped her leaving.

He'd always thought of it as his biggest mistake.

It was only now, all these years later, that Booth could see maybe it wasn't a mistake at all.

Maybe it was a gamble.

A gamble that he _**would**_ get a second chance with her.

And then Booth realised.

_His second chance was walking away from him._

He had to stop her.

"I'm in love with you."


	3. Part 3 Bare Bones

_**The Missing Part Of The Whole.**_

_**Previously**_:..

Booth looked her in the eye and spoke challengingly:

"Six years ago we didn't _just_ kiss and you know it! The truth is we didn't _stop_ kissing! You let me kiss you _and_ you kissed me back Bones! Over and over again! In the cab! In my doorway! In my bedroom-"

_**"THEN WHY DIDN'T WE HAVE SEX BOOTH? !"**_

The words were out before she could stop them.

He'd just made her so angry...

"Forget it!" She spat bitterly. "Just forget this whole dam conversation! I'm going home!"

Then she whirled around and stalked away from him.

For a moment Booth was so stunned, his feet were rooted to the floor and all he could do was stare after her...

The sight of her leaving triggered something.

_A memory._

Temperance Brennan storming out of his apartment six years ago...

Her angry face as she yelled at him:

"I swear Seeley Booth, if you let me leave now you've lost me! No second chances!"

_And a regret._

Because Booth had not stopped her leaving.

He'd always thought of it as his biggest mistake.

It was only now, all these years later, that Booth could see maybe it wasn't a mistake at all.

Maybe it was a gamble.

A gamble that he _**would**_ get a second chance with her.

And suddenly Booth realised.

_His second chance was walking away from him..._

He had to stop her.

"I'm in love with you."

* * *

_**Part 3.**_

_**Bare Bones.**_

Temperance Brennan was a very intelligent woman.

A woman who's brain was always full of multiple intelligent thoughts.

Only...

Right now...?

It didn't seem to be working.

All her thoughts had vanished.

All the intelligent ones included.

Gone.

Just like that.

And as a result Temperance Brennan was left feeling... absolutely nothing.

_Numb. _

Then there was the silence.

A silence so loud that it seemed to be _roaring._

The rest of the world seemed to have vanished too.

Brennan was aware of nothing but the pounding of her own frantic heartbeat.

_Alarmingly frantic._

So frantic it would surely burst out of her chest at any moment...

And she was frozen.

To the spot.

_Quite literally._

She couldn't move.

She couldn't even turn around.

She couldn't feel her limbs at all.

One minute she had been marching away, so angry, the next...

She was rooted to the ground and numb from head to toe.

She didn't even remember stopping, which was strange.

She must have done though, and she had, because, well, she was no longer walking away from him...

_Him..._

_I'm in love with you._

_Oh God._

Her thoughts came rushing back...

She wished they'd stayed away.

The flood of emotions that came with them was like nothing she'd ever experienced.

Brennan squeezed her eyes shut but it did nothing to stop the onslaught.

_Shock, amazement, dread, regret, sorrow, anger, pain, hope-_

One after another they came at her.

Each one like a physical blow.

Every thought turned into a torrent raging in her head.

She struggled to remember how to breathe.

In her confusion one thought leapt out higher than the others.

Her desperate mind seized it and refused to let it go, like a broken record, the needle screeched the same thing over and over again-

_Run. Run. Run. Run! Run! Run!_

Only Brennan's feet weren't complying.

She still couldn't move.

It was ironic.

The urge to run was overwhelming, but shock was keeping her still.

The result?

Warning: System in danger of overloading,_ oh and by the way breathe!_

She allowed herself a sharp intake of breathe.

It didn't help.

Her heartbeat only seemed to get faster.

The blood roared through her ears like a freight train.

Temperance Brennan knew she was panicking.

_Badly._

It was also ridiculous.

Temperance Brennan never panicked.

She did not _do_ emotions.

Why?

Because emotions were not rational.

People said she seemed cold sometimes.

She knew that.

They thought she was too aloof.

That she wasn't _human _enough.

But Temperance Brennan was smarter than most people.

She knew emotions were nothing more than chemicals realised by the brain in response to the stimuli it received from her surroundings.

So the rational way to cope with scary things was to not think about them.

Especially if she didn't _have_ to think about them.

And Temperance Brennan had got very good at figuring out what she did, and did not, _have_ to think about.

She had faced many scary things in her life.

Like when she was four and her big brother had locked her in a shed for three hours on Halloween. Leaving her alone with only the spiders and darkness for company...

Like when she got her first [and only] ever 'B' grade on a test in her English history class, she couldn't concentrate because of the other kids sniggering at her...

Like when her parents disappeared.

If you didn't think about scary things there were no emotions.

Hence no feelings.

Hence no pain.

It had always worked for her.

So what if people said she was too aloof? Too cold?

Let them.

She was Temperance Brennan.

The best dam anthropologist for miles around.

The most intelligent.

The most level-headed.

_And she was being ridiculous._

Why was she panicking?

She had nothing to panic about anyway.

He hadn't said what she thought...

Right?

He _couldn't_ have said what she thought.

He would take it back.

Yes that was it.

Just like the last time... on the side-walk... after his coma...

He said it then and he took it back.

So he would do the same thing this time.

Right?

Right.

He would take it back.

Any second now.

She knew he was watching her.

_She didn't have to be facing him to feel the heat of his gaze._

He would say something.

He would take it back.

She knew it.

There were times, like when some maniac was holding a gun to her head, the scary times she couldn't _not _think about, she relied on him.

He was the one she turned to...

He made everything better... he made her feel _safe._

So any second now... he would take it back.

Any second now...

He had to.

_Only._..

He did not take it back.

Brennan heard nothing from the man behind her.

She would have given anything just then, just to hear him take back those five simple words.

But Booth said nothing more.

And it was then that Brennan found herself becoming desperate.

_Take it back._

Frantic.

_Take it back! Take it back!_

And finally hysterical.

_Take it back! Take it back! For God's sake take it back!_

And then... as the tears began to roll silently down her cheeks...

_Please..._


	4. Part 4 Once A Gambler

_**The Missing Part Of The Whole.**_

_**Part 4.**_

_**Once A Gambler.**_

Seeley Booth had a problem.

He was an addict.

It had been a thorn in his side for the past eight years.

His only comfort was that for just over six of those years, he could at least say he was _reformed_.

Only, as it turns out...

_Once a gambler..._

And right now, he was seriously worried...

_Temperance Brennan wouldn't even look at him._

He'd just told her he was in love with her and she wouldn't even turn around.

He'd watched her storming away...

He'd watched her stop in her tracks...

Then... nothing.

Zip.

_Nada._

That was not what he expected at all.

He expected shock.

He expected her to have questions... to be mad at him maybe... to even shout...

_Hell_, he at least expected her to turn around and _look_ at him...

Anything would have been better than this... this... silence.

She hadn't said anything.

She hadn't done anything.

And as a result Booth no idea what the _heck _to do now.

He opened his mouth to speak – but what could he say? - and closed it again pretty quickly.

He felt lost.

What was going on in that head of hers?

What was she thinking?

She certainly wasn't helping him figure it out.

She was only standing about ten paces away but it might as well of been ten thousand.

Her back was ramrod straight and she was very still... _too_ still actually... her body was so taunt with tension, it didn't even look like she was breathing...

That's when it dawned on him.

She wasn't moving because part of her wanted to go.

Leave and not have to deal with this.

_But part of her also wanted to stay._

That part was struggling.

Temperance Brennan was fighting the urge to run.

He had to help her.

That was his first instinct.

It was also his role in her life.

_His role as her best friend._

When she was hurting, he went to her.

He provided her comfort... support.

_Only not this time._

This time _he_ was the source of her discomfort.

This time_ he _was the reason she was struggling.

There was nothing he could do to help her...

So Booth did the only thing he could do.

He waited.

He waited for her to gain control.

He waited for her to realise she had to face her fear.

They had to talk.

He waited for her to understand she couldn't run from him.

He waited for her to simply turn around.

And after what seemed like an age just staring at her back, Booth felt a surge of hope flare in him when he saw her foot move and-

_She took a step away from him._

She was leaving!

He had just told her he was in love with her and she was just going to walk away!

Booth felt a surge of anger.

Almost at once understanding replaced it, hitting him like a thunderbolt.

"You knew already, didn't you?"

He got all the answer he needed when she stopped abruptly - winching like he'd hit her with a physical object, rather than just honest words.

She still didn't turn around.

But it didn't matter anymore.

She wouldn't stop running away!

And that made Booth angry again.

"I guess I'm a fool for thinking you _didn't_ know." He declared harshly. "When did you figure it out? How long have you known? It obviously doesn't matter to you but it does to me. I'd like to know just how big a fool I've been. Jesus what a fool I've been! Arrgh!"

He wrung his hands in frustration.

When he looked at her, finding only her back, he thought to hell with it...

_She_ might not want to talk but he did and he had nothing to lose anymore...

"Well Bones? It's not like you to have nothing to say. You tell me, when was it? When did you figure out my feelings for you? Was it random? Some insignificant little thing? Like I just looked at you and you knew? A wrong word maybe? Did I let something slip? Or was it more personal? A specific time? Like... I don't know... your father's trial say?"

He was rambling now. He knew it. Pacing from side to side and rambling.

But he couldn't bring himself to care.

Anger and frustration loosed his tongue, he was just so mad at her...

But he may as well of been having a conversation with himself, you couldn't have one with someone's back...

"It can't have been the night we met of course." Booth declared loudly. "I mean, that's when _I_ knew. I know you'll find that hard to believe Bones but it's true. That's when I started to fall in love with you... but you? That night was just about lust, wasn't it? Biological urges and all that, right Bones?"

He watched her back flinching again and again as he spoke, as if every his word pained her, but it was the only way he knew she was even listening to him...

"So you can't have known then... or you wouldn't have left my apartment right?... or would you? God, you know what? I thought I knew you Bones but maybe I never did!"

He couldn't stop himself, the words coming out in a rush. "There's me driving myself crazy, thinking '_Hey, I'm in love with my best friend but she doesn't feel the same way, so I can't tell her'_' but you? You knew all along! And you never even thought to mention it! All those times when we were sat doing paperwork, eating Chinese together, you didn't ever think to say, _'I know your in love with me, Booth Old Buddy, but we can get past it.' _Because I could have accepted that! I'm a big boy! But you? Bury it under the carpet and pretend it's not there! Why is that your answer to everything Bones? Running away from the things that scare you! I was scared too, you know! Do you have any_ idea_ how hard it is being in love with your best friend? !"

That's when she whirled around.

Booth stopped mid-rant, shocked that she had... and at the sight of her.

She was crying.

Temperance Brennan had tears streaming down her face.

It was through them that she angrily answered his question.

"_What do you think Booth? !"_


	5. Part 5 Are We In Love?

_Author's note._

_Please re-read the last chapter. I've changed it slightly. The ending wasn't punchy enough._

_Better enjoy this chapter guys... it's the last one :)_

_**The Missing Part Of The Whole.**_

_**Previously...**_

Booth couldn't stop himself, the words coming out in a rush...

"There's me driving myself crazy, thinking '_Hey, I'm in love with my best friend but she doesn't feel the same way, so I can't tell her'_' but you? You knew all along! And you never even thought to mention it! All those times when we were sat doing paperwork, eating Chinese together, you didn't once ever think to say, _'I know your in love with me, Booth Old Buddy, we can get past it.' _Because I could have accepted that! I'm a big boy! But you? Bury it under the carpet and pretend it's not there! Why is that your answer to everything Bones? Running away from the things that scare you! I was scared too, you know! Do you have any_ idea_ how hard it is being in love with your best friend? !"

That's when she whirled around.

Booth stopped mid-rant, shocked that she had... and at the sight of her.

She was crying.

Temperance Brennan had tears streaming down her face.

And it was through them that she angrily answered his question.

"_What do you think Booth? !"_

_**Part 5.**_

_**Are We In Love?**_

Seeley Booth felt all his anger drain out of him like a popped balloon.

_Did she just say...?_

He closed his eyes, suddenly afraid he was dreaming.

When he opened them again, she was staring at him.

Temperance Brennan was staring at him.

Her face wet with tears, she looked very vulnerable.

But she was facing him.

At least she was facing him.

_And she was staring at him like that because...?_

_Oh yeah._

_This is the part where I'm supposed to say something..._

"D-d-did you-? D-do you-? Are-are you-? Are we-?"

Great.

He sounded like an idiot.

Now she was staring at him_ and _she looked confused.

He stopped, taking a deep breathe to calm himself.

He needed to organise his thoughts.

Where to begin?

There were a million questions he could ask.

But maybe only _one_ really mattered...

He looked at her, unable to keep the awe out of his voice, as he gave her the question he could hardly believe he was asking...

"_Are we in love?"_

Brennan looked down.

She closed her eyes... and sighed.

Booth felt his stomach drop-

But then...

"Yes." She met his gaze and whispered it softly, as if sharing a secret. "I believe we are."

_Seeley Booth let out a breathe he was not even aware he had been holding._

He had prayed for this moment for the last six years.

The moment when he and Brennan finally accepted they were more than just friends.

He had imagined this scene a million times, in a million different scenarios.

But the outcome was always the same.

They declared their true feelings.

_Then he kissed her senseless._

So it was ironic really.

Six long years of praying and wishing and just plain hoping and he finally had the moment he'd always wanted.

Only...

It wasn't like anything he had ever imagined.

_And he couldn't let one thing go:_

"How long have you known?"

He needed to know.

He just needed to.

Brennan said nothing at first.

She shifted from foot to foot, looking rather uncomfortable.

"Does it matter?" She finally asked, she didn't mean for it to come out so blunt.

Booth quirked an eyebrow and gave her a pointed look in answer.

"Fine, long enough okay? I just couldn't face-"

She faltered, unable to finish.

But Booth wasn't about to let her off the hook.

"Face what?" He asked. "Face the truth...?" His tone was heavy. "Or face _me_?"

His brown eyes flashed with hurt as he said it.

Brennan saw... and it pained her.

She wanted him to understand.

She shook her head.

"No... not like that. I... I couldn't face what it meant... everything would be different between us. I couldn't handle the possibility of being l-"

She faltered again, grimacing.

Booth sighed.

"Is it really so bad?" He asked simply. "Being loved by me?"

He looked defeated.

The sight of him standing there, looking like that... _moved_ Brennan.

The walls around her heart crumbled just a tiny bit and she felt a rush of sympathy... and affection.

"Your amazing Booth." She whispered it softly.

He looked at her then and she graced him with a small, watery smile as she continued.

"You prove it to me every moment I'm with you. Being around you makes _me_ a better person."

"_Then why won't you let me love you?" _

He didn't even sound angry... just resigned.

Brennan swallowed, deliberately avoiding his eyes by looking down at her hands. "We have such an amazing partnership already." She said after a moment. "What if we try for more and both of us end up getting hurt?"

She always sounded so confident and sure of herself, it was strange to hear her sounding so uncertain.

"You can't know this won't end badly Booth and if it does..."

She didn't want to finish the sentence.

But this time she_ knew _she had to.

"I lose the most important person in my life." She confessed, looking up at him at last.

He almost couldn't believe it – she was finally being honest with him.

And he was touched.

He also understood what she was saying and worse - she had a point.

They could try for more... and ruin what they already had.

It was a risk.

But Booth was a gambler.

And he thought, no, _he_ _knew_, there was no going back now.

The dice had been already been rolled.

The cards had already been dealt.

_All in. _

He took a deep breathe.

"I get it Bones." He said. "And it's true I can't guarantee that everything will work out between us. I do know I would never intentionally hurt you though. I care about you too much. And I know you care about me too. Yes we could try for more and ruin our partnership but if what we have now is so amazing, isn't it worth trying?"

He looked at her and she hung on his words as though they were a life preserver, unable to look away.

"Its a risk Bones. But everything in life is a risk isn't it? A gamble. Sometimes you win. Sometimes you don't. You have to trust that everything happens for a reason."

Brennan looked down.

"But I'm not a gambler. I'm a scientist Booth." She said sadly. "I trust in facts. I've invested my life in them. I trust in facts to do my job. Facts are all I know."

He looked her in the eye.

"Do you trust me Bones?" He asked seriously.

She didn't have to think.

"You know I do." She replied.

"Then why can't that be enough?" He asked her.

Booth realised it was time to put all his cards on the table.

"_I love you."_

Her eyes widened at the words... and how easily he said them.

"_That's_ a fact." Booth continued "A fact you can trust in. I'm asking you to trust me Bones. I'm asking you to trust _in us."_

He was saying all the right things.

Brennan wanted so badly to believe him.

But she needed him to understand.

"I'm-"

She stopped, swallowing.

Gathering her resolve, she tried again.

"I-I'm scared Booth." Her voice cracked but she got the words out. "I'm really, really scared."

She looked into his eyes... asking him to understand.

And Booth did.

"I know." He agreed, with a dramatic sigh.

Brennan looked down, saddened.

But Booth wasn't finished...

"_The thing is though,"_ He declared aloud. _"I had kinda hoped we could be scared together." _

Brennan's head shot up, her eyes widening in amazement.

Could he mean-?

"Really?" She breathed, the words nothing more than a whisper.

They looked at each other.

Booth slowly nodded. Just once.

Brennan did not look away.

She held his gaze.

The air was suddenly full of meaning.

And Booth knew.

It was time.

"Come here." He said.

It was a undisguised question.

They both knew it.

Booth _knew_ they both knew it.

So he said nothing else.

He wanted her to come to him.

He wanted her to _want _to come to him.

She had made the first step.

Now she had to make the leap.

Only...

She was looking at him, but she wasn't moving.

She regarded him through long jet black lashes with a deep-in-thought look on her face.

A long moment passed.

And during this moment Booth had the horrible thought she might actually walk away again.

But instead she spoke...

"We'd probably argue."

Booth looked at her.

A smile appeared to be tugging at the corners of her mouth...

"I'll always let you win." He answered simply.

Brennan did not look away.

"But you'll see me too much." She tried instead.

Booth did not need to think.

"It won't be enough."

"Then we'll get on each other's nerves." Brennan retorted.

"Then we'll always be laughing."

"What if you have a mid-life crisis?"

Booth laughed at this, the light returning to his brown eyes.

He had forgotten how blunt she could be.

"Then you can laugh _at_ me." He emphasised, with a rueful smile.

There was silence for a moment, as Brennan racked her brain for more excuses, more challenges, more reasons why they couldn't be together...

Booth eyed her, one eyebrow raised as if to say 'Well, anything else?'

Brennan said the only thing she had left.

The thing that scared her the most in the entire world.

"_You might leave me._"

The pain in her voice was clear.

And so was his reply.

"_Not a chance." _

He held her gaze, letting her see the honesty in his eyes.

Opening himself to her.

Then, when he felt he had her attention fully, he gave her a challenge of his own:

"If you come to me, right now Temperance Brennan, _we cross a line."_

Her eyes widened.

She knew what he meant straight away.

_She remembered._

Six years ago, she had angrily stormed out of his apartment.

On the way out she had made a vow:

_I swear Seeley Booth, if you let me leave now you've lost me! No second chances!_

She was angry because she thought he was rejecting her.

So it was ironic that with these words she had stopped them becoming anything more than friends.

_She had drawn a line. _

Booth also remembered making his own.

Frustrated at the beside of an injured Cam, Booth had made a vow too.

He'd said that people who work together shouldn't be anything more than friends. It was too dangerous.

He was upset when he said it.

He thought Cam was going to die.

But he'd still said it.

And Brennan had been standing right next to him at the time, in no doubt as to what he was implying...

The partners had each drawn a line.

But Booth had already erased his.

He looked Brennan in the eye and asked her the most important question of the night.

"_Are you ready to erase yours?"_

They looked at each other.

Booth held his breathe for what felt like the hundredth time that night.

She didn't break his gaze.

There was a long silence.

A silence full of tension.

And Booth started to think he'd blow it.

What had he done?

She wasn't ready after all...

But then...

"I still won't change my mind about pie."

It came totally out of the blue.

But Booth smiled, unable to hide his amusement.

_God, he was head-over-heels in love with this woman._

"I still won't stop trying to convince you."

He answered, the air of finality in his tone left Brennan in no doubt that he meant it.

And he did, because his words were nothing to do with pie...

He sent her a grin, his eyes shining with warmth.

She looked at him for a long moment, studying him...

Then she nodded.

He watched her take a step.

_Forward. _

She took a step_ towards_ him.

Then another.

And another.

She didn't stop until she was standing in front of him.

Then they were looking at each other.

They weren't touching, yet in so many ways they were closer than they had ever been.

_Everything was different now._

The tension had gone.

The look that passed between them was open.

Tender.

Full of affection.

It was the look of two people who had been kept apart for a very long time and had suddenly found each other again.

It was the look of two people who didn't have to pretend anymore.

She sent him a watery half-smile.

The kind of smile that said 'Wow, I made it. I can't believe I'm here.'

_And with that smile, Seeley Booth fell just a little bit more in love with her._

"Hi." He said softly, the corners of his eyes creasing in the way she had always loved so much.

The way that made her heart skip a beat.

Brennan looked at him shyly and smiled. "Hi."

She sounded giddy and slightly breathless.

Booth found it adorable.

Now that she was standing in front of him, he could clearly see the tear tracks evident on her face.

"I hate seeing you cry." He declared, as, without thinking, he reached up to wipe the marks away.

She was unprepared for his action, pulling back a little.

He stopped mid-way, the tips of his fingers just grazing her cheek hesitatingly.

He looked down at her, his hand hovering at her face.

Brennan looked into his eyes and her breathe hitched.

_Because all she saw there was tenderness._

No man had never looked at her that way before.

As if she were a treasured procession, as if she was so treasured, he was scared to death of breaking her...

He didn't have to say it, she didn't need to ask, it was there, all over his face, the truth of it.

_He loved her._

He really and truly loved her.

And with this realisation Brennan felt a warm feeling spread throughout her body.

The once-tiny flame in her heart, sparked and became a fire.

It felt good.

No, it felt amazing.

_To be loved._

She leaned into his touch, allowing his hand to cup her cheek and he brushed her tears away with his thumb.

His touch was gentle.

Heartbreakingly gentle.

And imitate.

So very imitate.

And it was _him._

_Him._

Her partner.

Her best friend.

Everything was going to be okay.

_She could trust it._

At this, Brennan wanted to cry again.

She felt the tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

Booth saw the tears glistening there.

His voice was affectionate as he raised her chin so he could look into her eyes. "Now your doing it on purpose." He smiled.

That did it.

Brennan laughed, as the spilled down her cheeks.

He always knew what to say.

Always.

"Why are you crying?" Booth asked softly, as he continued to brush the fresh tears away as they fell.

Brennan raised her face to his, their gazes locking.

"I think I'm happy." She whispered, her eyes wide, as if she couldn't quite believe it herself.

That's when Booth pulled her into his arms.

He held her.

Just held her.

His chin rested on the top of her head.

And she buried her face in his chest.

His scent – earthy, chocolatey– was all around her and Brennan felt calmer.

He was warm.

The beating of his heartbeat- comforting.

_Real._

It felt right.

She felt like she belonged in his arms.

Like she always had.

And Brennan realised she owed him one last truth.

"Cleo Eller." She whispered softly, against his chest.

Booth pulled back slightly to look at her.

He gave her a questioning look in response.

Brennan took a deep breathe.

"Our second case together." She said. "When I was getting into my car at the end. You put your hand here."

She took his hand in her own and as he looked at her, she placed it in the spot that they both knew was his and his alone.

_The small of her back._

"That's how long." She explained, looking at him with warmth in her eyes. "I knew then. How you felt. You- you did what you did... _that night. _You put your hand back in the exact same place. Like you remembered. It's..." She hesitated, but only for a moment. "It's when I fell in love with you. It's _why_ I fell in love with you."

He stared at her, mouth open.

_She had finally said the words he had been waiting to hear for six years._

"I have spent so long being afraid Booth." She admitted softly. "So very long."

Booth swallowed thickly.

"Are you afraid now?" He asked seriously, then without waiting for an answer. "I don't want you to be afraid anymore."

He sounded so sincere, so genuine.

Brennan stepped into his personal space, leaning her body into his.

"Then show me." She whispered softly into his ear. "Show me I don't have to be."

She looked at him again, needing to make him understand.

"I know there's so much we have to talk about. So much we need to figure out right now but... but can it wait till tomorrow?... Please? I just want tonight to be about us. Nothing else. Just you and I." She smiled. "I want you to kiss me Booth and then I want you to take me home to your apartment and I want you to make love to me. Is that okay?"

The enormity of what she said hit Booth like a bolt of lightening.

He stared at her in shock.

All his Christmas's had just came at once.

_Any minute now he would surely wake up..._

Brennan looked back at him.

Waited for him to say something...

When he didn't, she got impatient.

"Booth? I think... I mean... that was an invitation. I would like you to kiss me now."

Booth didn't have to pinch himself.

He was awake.

Only Brennan said stuff like that.

He laughed. "I concur." He said, unable to wipe the smile from his face. "I totally concur."

Then he leaned forward and brushed his lips across Brennan's – the slightest touch- but it sent a jolt of electricity straight through her body and the fire in her heart roared.

He did it again, attentively, questioningly,

And the fire became a furnace.

But before she could deepen the kiss, he pulled back ever so slightly and looked at her.

For the last six years, Brennan had often thought about what it would feel like to kiss Booth again.

_She remembered._

But it turns out she was wrong.

She had lied.

_And so had her memories._

White-hot desire surged through her body and she leaned forward and captured his lips in a searing kiss that told him never to question again.

It felt _amazing._

_The flames of passion burned out of control as six years of sexual tension were turned into a kiss._

They only stopped when the need for air became too apparent to ignore and they both broke apart, breathless.

Booth leaned his forehead against Brennan's.

"Why did we wait so long to do that again?" He uttered after a moment, feeling dazed.

It was a rhetorical question.

She wasn't supposed to answer.

_But some things never change._

"I was resisting you," Brennan said frankly. "I guess I was being a scaredy squirrel."

Booth started laughing.

"What?" She demanded looking at him, confused at his laughter. "What's so funny?"

The indignant expression on her face only made him laugh harder.

"It's... scaredy c-c-cat Bones!" He got out breathlessly between chuckles. "Scaredy... cat, n-not squirrel!"

And he collapsed in laughter again.

Brennan watched him laughing and it was infectious.

She started laughing too.

They stood on the side walk beside the Jeffersonian.

Two idiots laughing their heads off.

Two idiots in love.

Finally Brennan paused, looking thoughtful. "That phrase is inaccurate really." She declared. "Cats aren't scared. They're curious creatures, alert by nature. They only run when they feel threatened, like when their chased by predators, like dogs and that's a natural response to danger stimuli so they shouldn't be penalised for doing something that's natural-"

Booth was watching her ramble, his smile getting bigger and bigger.

Brennan finally noticed he was staring at her and stopped, blushing.

Booth wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close.

"God I love you so much." He said smiling, as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I'm going to be in love with you for a very, very, _very_ long time."

She smiled, ever rational. "You can't know that."

Booth grinned at her, placing his hand in the spot where it belonged.

"Wanna bet?"


End file.
